The Green Room

Children who connect with nature grow into adults who care about protecting it.

Sylvie de Sousa and Katharine Byers are two Vancouver Moms who’ve put together a bag of tricks sure to nurture eco-consciousness in any kid (and, hopefully, prevent the onset of what Richard Louv calls “nature deficit disorder”). They helped us put together activities to turn kids into bird watchers and protectors for our November newsletter.

Share your wisdom about getting kids into nature here.

Lenore Dickson and Mike West, who live just outside Dundas, Ontario, have eco-minded kids - nine-year old Ruby and eleven-year-old Will - who chose to make David Suzuki’s Nature Challenge the theme of each of their summer birthday parties.

They made piñatas of things they really wanted to take a whack at – an incandescent light bulb and a Hummer – tie-dyed organic cotton T-shirts, and played cooperative games that had both a low environmental impact and repurposed stuff they had lying around the house - three-legged and sack races, bucket brigade, capture the flag, limbo, ball tosses and a dress-up relay - as well as a Nature Challenge Match Game and Treasure Hunt .

Here are some pictures from their parties:

All the kids at Ruby’s party had a hand in playing a Nature Challenge Match Game.

Ruby demonstrates one method of ridding the world of incandescent light bulbs. Celeste Alex (in purple) had such a good time, her mother Robin Lane reported, she came home “all excited about how we can participate as a family in David Suzuki’s Nature Challenge” . The other friend in the photo is Louise Monk.

For their party piñatas, Ruby and Will each picked something they wanted to give a good bash. Will chose a Hummer. Here they are putting on the final touches.

Will and his friends went on a Nature Challenge Scavenger Hunt. They pieced letters together to solve the puzzle ‘polar bears walk on thin ice’ and, by chance, came upon a white tail deer skull with antlers. Front row kneeling (L to R): Tate Angelkovski, Grant Forsythe, Brandon Viaes, William Rutherford. Standing: Cody Riccatone , JJ Shanlin, Emma Holland , Will Dickson, Noah Van Duzer, Noah Leggatt, Tim Bentley, Jess Sussman. Tucked in behind: Will Bermingham, Evan Souter.

Both Ruby and Will asked their friends to bring donations for The David Suzuki Foundation in lieu of gifts – thanks kids!

Got more great ideas for earth-friendly kid fun? Add you comments here!

The children of Paul and Lucy Morel of Deep River, Ontario, sent this loving tribute to their Dad:

Our father was always conscious of the world around him and its limited resources and he attempted to instill this in his four children. Here are the top ten things which seemed quite odd (and embarrassing, if truth be told) to us as children and teenagers in the 70s and 80s, but which we now realize were wise and conscious choices. Many of these carry memories which now bring us to tears of laughter.

1. We had a well-used wood stove in our basement to cut down on furnace use

2. The heat was turned down to about 55° Fahrenheit at night in the winter - we loaded on blankets and wore warm pajamas (we swear we could at times see our breath in the mornings)

3. Our laundry was dried on a clothes line and the dryer used only in limited circumstances (frozen stiff jeans were quite normal in our house)

4. We have always had a "compost heap" in our back yard which nourished our vegetable garden (our early chore as children was to carry the potato peelings and vegetable scraps to the compost each night)

5. Reduce/reuse/recycle was second nature to our dad - he recycled when recycling wasn’t cool (a milk jug would be refashioned into a scoop for the water barrel which in turn was fashioned out of an old garbage can)

6. We naturally had no air conditioning in the summer - windows were opened at night, and closed with drapes pulled in the mid-morning to capture and maintain the cool air of the nights
7. Our father never used Kleenex - he has always had handkerchiefs (and still does to this day!)

8. Our dad was the first person we knew who replaced all lightbulbs in his house with compact fluorescent

9. We actually always shared bath water to limit electricity and water use!

10. Our washing machine had a "suds saver" such that on laundry day multiple loads of laundry were washed in the same water

We will always recall as teenagers our Dad’s observation on the changing world when he would shake his head and say "We are becoming a throw-away society". But our Dad certainly did his part and now we find ourselves following his example as best we can: using our own clotheslines instead of our dryers, using our own water barrels to water our gardens, getting our own composters, installing programmable thermostats to ensure our air-conditioning and heating is used at its minimal – and of course reminding our own children to turn off the lights when they leave the room!. We are grateful to our wonderful father for his example.

In honour of his eightieth birthday, we have made a donation to the David Suzuki Foundation. Here is our Dad’s mantra from our childhood- words to live by:

WASTE NOT, WANT NOT.

Margot Morel (Guelph, Ontario)
Mark Morel (Ajax, Ontario)
Catherine Morel-Lopez (Toronto, Ontario)
Lisa Morel-Misener (Ottawa, Ontario)

Lots of green living ideas are recycled! Maybe that’s why what seems ‘new’ to a lot of people is second nature to others. Readers - what green wisdom was passed down to you from parents and grandparents?

Natasha Waxman of Waterloo, Ontario plants some fun and goodwill in her neighbourhood:

The first intimation I had that I was onto something was when I started digging up my small, struggling front lawn, and my neighbour Marie wandered over from across the street with a shovel. It looked like fun, she said. Others joined in throughout the day, and by afternoon we had scraped it bald. I dumped a few meters of good composted earth onto the patch; my neighbour Carolyn jostled her one year-old twins in her arms while she advised me on where to put the tomato stakes and the basil and the chard to make the most of the small space. I got quite a few puzzled looks as people walked by, especially at the big twisty tomato stakes.

Within eight weeks, it was as though somebody had pointed a wand at that sad little patch–and said, GROW! People would wander by and and marvel at the changes from week to week, at the sheer crazy bounty of it. The tomato plants grew as tall as me. Kids would hop from stone to stone on the little paths I’d made through the plants. People would often ask shyly if was I worried that people would steal the tomatoes and I’d say "No! That’s what they’re there for!" and I’d huck them until they started picking. It’s funny how enjoyable picking is– elderly ladies seem to like it as much as the toddlers. Sometimes people would eat them warm and sweet from the vine, which was incredibly gratifying, and sometimes I had to break up cherry tomato throwing matches. The squirrels ate ALL the pumpkins in one day, "like they were filet mingon," as my neighbour Mary said. People stopped by with advice, or to tell me about the gardens or farms they’d grown up with. I continually tried to get people to take home some chard (does anyone really love chard?). Nine-year-old Linnea would bring her friends by to delicately pick the tiny wild strawberries (which incidentally are becoming something of an invasive menace, but I digress), like little girls in a story.

We’ve just finished eating the tomato sauce I canned last year, and there’s still some pesto. This year’s tomatoes have been in for several weeks now, stretching their roots. I’ve struck out into eggplants, broccoli and spinach, and nixed the chard (though it was so prolific!…). People have been coming by as I work to ask how things are going, reminisce about last year’s garden, and wonder if this year can possibly be as good.

My feeling? It already is.

Thanks, Natasha. It sounds wonderful. And I love chard! /Gail

I am a lunch monitor for a grade 2 class. I am trying to find kid-friendly fact or fiction questions that I may ask my kids through their lunch hour. Would you have any suggestions where I may find it??

Amy Hollett
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Comments on the May 2008 Newsletter: Putting on a Green Face

I used to purchase Ucerin, a lovely "natural" facial cream made up at the local pharmacy. The last time I purchased this product I broke out in a horrible, red, itchy rash all over my face. I researched on the net and talked with the pharmacist, and much to my astonishment, a product was added to the cream to add to its shelf life. This horrid product was propylene glycol! This product is antifreeze! Imagine ANTIFREEZE in a facial cream! The pharmacist was actually not very sympathetic and went along with the idea of extending a product’s shelf life. I wonder, though, if, deep inside, she found this rather revolting as well! This chemical is also found, abundantly, in shampoos as well as many other products.

I believe we are taking this all too lightly and consumers should be made more aware of this danger. I honestly cannot find a shampoo that does NOT have this nasty chemical. I am outraged that this is the case; we should be "up-in-arms" about such deadly chemicals in the products we purchase.

It would be great if we could induce the manufacturers/government to prohibit the use of these chemicals in toiletry items. I wonder how many chemicals are in baby products these days?

Eleanor Card , Kentville Nova Scotia

I stopped buying and using paper towels about 30 yrs ago when friends returned from living in Australia and told us paper towels weren’t available there. ….so they learned to live without them!
Then I thought - what do I really need paper towels for that I can’t use reusable cloth wipes for? The only thing that came to mind was to absorb excess fat from frying bacon or other fried foods. (We don’t eat many of those these days, either)….This is an easy thing to give up and it can save so many trees, energy and excess garbage that I wanted to pass my story on.

JGR, Toronto Ontario

I thought it would be nice to introduce myself a little before I begin posting prolifically in the Green Room.

I’m one of many former Ontario residents who has transplanted themselves on Canada’s beautiful west coast. I’m currently living in North Vancouver, BC - the home of the North Shore mountains, and some of the most beautiful temperate rainforest in the world.

I take advantage of the proximity of said mountains as often as possible; hiking, mountain biking, maintaining sustainable hiking/biking trails, and camping whenever I can.

Next year I hope to add skiing (possibly backcountry?) to that list.

Being a freelance photographer, I also carry my camera almost everywhere I go.

Now for the exciting part! In a few months time, I will become a mom. This is nothing new for many people out there, but it’s certainly new for me.

Living green can be challenging enough for myself and my husband in our rented apartment; doing so with a newborn baby is bound to be an adventure. I’m looking forward to it, and I hope to share some of my experiences and gain some insight from you along the way!